Team Overview
The Iraq national football team ( Arabic : منتخب الْعِرَاق لِكُرَةُ الْقَدَم ), nicknamed the Lions of Mesopotamia ( Arabic : أسود الرافدين ), represents Iraq in men's international football and is controlled by the Iraq Football Association (IFA), the governing body for football in Iraq . Iraq's usual home venue is the Basra International Stadium . Iraq made its first FIFA World Cup appearance in 1986 , scoring a solitary goal against Belgium , and qualified for the second time in 2026 . Iraq is one of eight current AFC nations to have won the AFC Asian Cup , claiming the title in 2007 in spite of difficult conditions and limited preparation. Iraq defeated some of the favourites in the competition including Australia , South Korea and Saudi Arabia . This qualified the team for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup where they earned two points in the group stage; they later finished fourth at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup .
2026 Fixtures
| Date | Match | Group / Round | Venue | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-16 18:00 UTC-4 | Iraq vs Norway | Group I | Boston (Foxborough) | SCHEDULED |
| 2026-06-22 17:00 UTC-4 | France vs Iraq | Group I | Philadelphia | SCHEDULED |
| 2026-06-26 15:00 UTC-4 | Senegal vs Iraq | Group I | Toronto | SCHEDULED |
Honours
| Continental: AFC Asian Cup Champions (1) : 2007 |
| Continental: Asian Games Gold medal (1) : 1982 |
| Regional: WAFF Championship Champions (1) : 2002 Runners-up (3): 2007 , 2012 , 2019 Third place (1): 2000 |
| Regional: Arab Cup Champions (4) : 1964 , 1966 , 1985 , 1988 (record) Third place (1): 2012 |
| Regional: Arabian Gulf Cup Champions (4) : 1979 , 1984 , 1988 , 2023 Runners-up (2): 1976 , 2013 |
| Regional: West Asian Games Gold medal (1) : 2005 (joint record) |
| Regional: Arab Games Gold medal (1) : 1985 Silver medal (1): 1999 |
| Friendly: Merdeka Tournament Winners : 1981 , 1995 Runners-up: 1977 , 1978 |
| Friendly: Nehru Cup Winners : 1995 , 1997 |
| Friendly: King's Cup Winners : 2023 , 2025 |
| Friendly: Tripoli Fair Tournament Winners : 1967 Runners-up: 1966 |
| Friendly: International Friendship Championship Winners : 2019 Third place: 2018 |
| Friendly: Merlion Cup Winners : 1984 |
| Friendly: Peace and Friendship Cup Winners : 1989 |
| Friendly: UAE Four Nations Friendship Tournament Winners : 1999 |
| Friendly: UAE International Cup Winners : 2009 |
Competition Records
FIFA World Cup
| FIFA World Cup record | FIFA World Cup qualification record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D * | L | GF | GA |
| 1930 to 1950 | Not a FIFA member | Not a FIFA member | ||||||
| 1954 to 1970 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||
| 1974 | Did not qualify | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 6 | |
| 1978 | Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||
| 1982 | Did not qualify | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | |
| 1986 | Group stage | 23rd | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 1990 | Did not qualify | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 5 | |
| 1994 | 13 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 37 | 13 | ||
| 1998 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 8 | ||
| 2002 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 37 | 15 | ||
| 2006 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 17 | 7 |
FIFA World Cup
| FIFA World Cup history | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Manager | Round | Score | Result | Goalscorers for Iraq |
| 1986 | Evaristo de Macedo | Group stage | |||
| Iraq 0–1 Paraguay | Loss | ||||
| Iraq 1–2 Belgium | Loss | Radhi 59' | |||
| Iraq 0–1 Mexico | Loss | ||||
| 2026 | Graham Arnold | Group stage | |||
| Iraq – Norway | TBD | ||||
| Iraq – France | TBD | ||||
| Iraq – Senegal | TBD | ||||
| First match: Iraq 0–1 Paraguay – 4 June 1986, Estadio Nemesio Díez , Toluca , Mexico Biggest win: None Biggest defeat: Iraq 0–1 Paraguay – 4 June 1986 and Iraq 1–2 Belgium – 8 June 1986 and Iraq 0–1 Mexico – 11 June 1986 Best finish: Group stage (1986) Worst finish: Group stage (1986) Overall top scorer: Ahmed Radhi (1 goal) Most goals in a single tournament: Ahmed Radhi (1 goal, 1986) |
AFC Asian Cup
| AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup qualification record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D * | L | GF | GA |
| 1956 | Not an AFC member | Not an AFC member | ||||||
| 1960 | ||||||||
| 1964 | ||||||||
| 1968 | ||||||||
| 1972 | Group stage | 6th | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 1976 | Fourth place | 4th | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 1980 | Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||
| 1984 | ||||||||
| 1988 | ||||||||
| 1992 | Banned due to Gulf War | Banned due to Gulf War | ||||||
| 1996 | Quarter-finals | 6th | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 4 |
AFC Asian Cup
| AFC Asian Cup history | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Manager | Round | Score | Result | Goalscorers for Iraq |
| 1972 | Abdelilah Hassan | Group allocation matches | |||
| Iraq 0–0 ( a.e.t. ) (4–2 p ) South Korea | Draw | ||||
| Group stage | |||||
| Iraq 0–3 Iran | Loss | ||||
| Iraq 1–1 Thailand | Draw | Yousif 6' | |||
| 1976 | Lenko Grčić | Group stage | |||
| Iraq 0–2 Iran | Loss | ||||
| Iraq 1–0 South Yemen | Win | Waal 84' | |||
| Semi-finals | |||||
| Iraq 2–3 ( a.e.t. ) Kuwait | Loss | Abdul-Jalil 46' , Hassan 85' |
FIFA Confederations Cup
| FIFA Confederations Cup record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
| 1992 to 1995 | Did not enter | |||||||
| 1997 to 2005 | Did not qualify | |||||||
| 2009 | Group stage | 7th | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2013 to 2017 | Did not qualify | |||||||
| Total | Best: Group stage | 1/10 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
FIFA Confederations Cup
| FIFA Confederations Cup history | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Manager | Round | Score | Result |
| 2009 | Bora Milutinović | Group stage | ||
| Iraq 0–0 South Africa | Draw | |||
| Iraq 0–1 Spain | Loss | |||
| Iraq 0–0 New Zealand | Draw | |||
| First match: Iraq 0–0 South Africa – 14 June 2009, Ellis Park Stadium , Johannesburg , South Africa Biggest win: None Biggest defeat: Iraq 0–1 Spain – 17 June 2009, Free State Stadium , Bloemfontein , South Africa Best finish: Group stage (2009) Worst finish: Group stage (2009) Overall top scorer: None Most goals in a single tournament: None |
Summer Olympics
| Summer Olympics record | Qualification record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
| 1900 to 1936 | Not an IOC member | Not an IOC member | ||||||
| 1948 to 1956 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||
| 1960 | Did not qualify | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 10 | |
| 1964 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 1968 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 5 | ||
| 1972 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 1976 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 4 | ||
| 1980 | Quarter-finals | 8th | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 1984 | Group stage | 14th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 1988 | Group stage | 10th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 |
| 1992 –present | See Iraq national under-23 football team | See Iraq national under-23 football team |
Summer Olympics
| Summer Olympics history | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Manager | Round | Score | Result | Goalscorers for Iraq |
| 1980 | Anwar Jassam | Group stage | |||
| Iraq 3–0 Costa Rica | Win | H. Ahmed 45' , H. Saeed 49' , F. Hassan 75' | |||
| Iraq 0–0 Finland | Draw | ||||
| Iraq 1–1 Yugoslavia | Draw | F. Hassan 61' | |||
| Quarterfinals | |||||
| Iraq 0–4 East Germany | Loss | ||||
| 1984 | Ammo Baba | Group stage | |||
| Iraq 1–1 Canada | Draw | H. Saeed 83' | |||
| Iraq 0–1 Cameroon | Loss | ||||
| Iraq 2–4 Yugoslavia | Loss | H. Saeed 17' , Shihab 43' |
Current Squad
| Pos | Name | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | ||||
| GK | Kumel Al-Rekabe | 1 | 0 | Erbil |
| Defenders | ||||
| DF | Ahmed Maknzi | 6 | 0 | Al-Karma |
| DF | Ali Faez | 54 | 4 | Al-Najaf |
| DF | Ameer Sabah Khudhair | 0 | 0 | Al-Shorta |
| DF | Dario Naamo | 1 | 0 | Dundee United |
| DF | Maitham Jabbar | 20 | 0 | Al-Zawraa |
| DF | Saad Natiq | 44 | 1 | Duhok |
| Midfielders | ||||
| MF | Amjad Attwan | 91 | 5 | Zakho |
| MF | Bashar Rasan | 65 | 4 | Pakhtakor |
| MF | Hasan Abdulkareem | 21 | 1 | Al-Zawraa |
| MF | Hussein Ali Al-Saedi | 53 | 6 | Al-Shorta |
| MF | Jussef Nasrawe | 1 | 0 | SV Ried |
| MF | Karrar Nabeel | 8 | 0 | Al-Zawraa |
| MF | Montader Madjed | 4 | 0 | Hammarby |
| MF | Osama Rashid | 43 | 2 | Zakho |
| MF | Peter Gwargis | 4 | 0 | Duhok |
| MF | Sajjad Jassim | 14 | 1 | Al-Karma |
| MF | Sherko Karim | 28 | 1 | Zakho |
| Forwards | ||||
| FW | Amar Muhsin | 8 | 0 | Gimpo |
| FW | Mohammed Jawad | 3 | 0 | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya |
All-Time Leaders
| Most Caps | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Stat | Years |
| Younis Mahmoud | 148 Caps | 2002–2016 |
| Hussein Saeed | 137 Caps | 1976–1990 |
| Alaa Abdul-Zahra | 124 Caps | 2007–2021 |
| Adnan Dirjal | 122 Caps | 1978–1990 |
| Ahmed Radhi | 121 Caps | 1982–1997 |
| Ahmed Ibrahim | 117 Caps | 2010–2022 |
| Hawar Mulla Mohammed | 113 Caps | 2001–2012 |
| 113 | 17 Caps | 2001–2013 |
| Top Scorers | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Stat | Years |
| Younis Mahmoud | 148 Goals | 2002–2016 |
| Hussein Saeed | 137 Goals | 1976–1990 |
| Alaa Abdul-Zahra | 124 Goals | 2007–2021 |
| Adnan Dirjal | 122 Goals | 1978–1990 |
| Ahmed Radhi | 121 Goals | 1982–1997 |
| Ahmed Ibrahim | 117 Goals | 2010–2022 |
| Hawar Mulla Mohammed | 113 Goals | 2001–2012 |
| 113 | 17 Goals | 2001–2013 |